After pause, Newsom releases $1B in homeless funds

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has dispatched $1 billion in state homelessness funding that he paused earlier this month.

Naturally, there’s a catch. In exchange for the funding, local governments have agreed to step up the aggressiveness of their plans going forward to reduce the number of unhoused people.

The governor said Friday that he had productive discussions with about 100 mayors and local officials, according to the Associated Press.

“It was nice to hear their progress. And it was nice to hear their recognition that we have to get to another level,” he said to reporters after the two-hour-plus meeting. “What I want to see is what everybody wants to see: the streets of California cleaned up. We want to see encampments cleaned up, we want to see people housed.”

Despite coasting through his reelection, the issue of homelessness is still on the governor’s agenda.

Facing considerable political pressure to reduce the number of houseless individuals camping in public areas, Newsom sent shockwaves throughout the state when he announced he would withhold $1 billion until cities and counties demonstrated more comprehensive plans. At the time he called the plans submitted by local governments “simply unacceptable” as they would collectively reduce the state’s homeless population by just 2 percent over the next four years.

Though there’s an additional $1 billion on the table, Erin Mellon, a spokesperson for the governor’s office, said it won’t be released until governments pledge “to be more aggressive across the board.” Local housing plans are due in the coming weeks and will require more efficient methods of getting people into housing and streamlining the building of more homes for poor and extremely poor households.

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Many elected officials throughout California criticized the move, saying it was counterproductive to hold money needed for shelter beds, outreach workers and other services for unhoused people.

Newsom responded by saying he had no plans on turning his back on local governments, adding that his administration was “finding new dedicated money as we enter into what could be a recession with the headwinds, one has to be sober about that — just as they’re sober about that with their budgets.”

Coming to Newsom’s defense was Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, who said he understood the governor’s need to provoke local governments into action. He also praised his work converting motels into homes and additional mental health services.

The California State Association of Counties felt very differently.

“We can’t fix an ongoing crisis with one-time commitments. Progress requires clear state, county, and city roles aligned with sustainable, equitable funding. We need to get out of our own way and work together,” said Graham Knaus, executive director of the association, which represents the state’s 58 counties.

— Maddy Sperling